AppleInsider Staff
The nation's wireless carriers have yet to see steady shipments of Apple's cellular-enabled iPad mini with Retina display, with three of the "big four" telecoms all backordered for weeks as the holiday shopping season draws closer.
According to a report from CNET, Verizon, AT&T and T-Mobile are all seeing estimated ship dates slip to at least December, though Apple's own supply for Wi-Fi + Cellular iPad minis continues to improve.
The shortage suggests supplies are still constrained for the cellular 4G version of Apple's high-resolution 7.9-inch tablet, as Verizon recently pushed back shipping estimates to Dec. 2. Previously, the nation's largest carrier was quoting a target date of Nov. 25, but a spokesperson is now unable to say when the device will hit store shelves.
As for AT&T, the company's website says all models of the Retina iPad mini will ship in 21 to 28 business days. T-Mobile, too, is back-ordered for an estimated 6 to 8 weeks.
Although cell carriers may not be getting adequate supply of the hot-selling mini, Apple has been bolstering its stock for customers, who now have to wait 5 to 10 days for the unit to ship. This is a major improvement from launch day, when even the first orders showed wait times of a few days. At the time, Wi-Fi + Cellular models showed 5- to 10-day ship-by times, which later fell to weeks.
In a note to investors, KGI analyst Ming-Chi Kuo said Apple's manufacturers will reach mass production levels sufficient early next year, with shipments expected to grow 102 percent over the next quarter.
Those looking to get their hands on a Retina iPad mini as soon as possible can check Seaturtle.org's unofficial iPad mini availability notifier, which offers a snapshot of brick-and-mortar Apple Stores that have the unit in stock for pick-up.
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13 Comments
Surprisingly mine shipped this past Monday only 2 days after I ordered it from T-Mobile's website.
"Supply shortage" or "Overwhelming demand"?
In the meantime, 800 000 Samswatches sold. 'nuff said.
If I were Apple, I'd give AT&T the scraps. At our local AT&T store they do their best to hide the iPhones and iPads they have on display. And AT&T employees push Samscum and Android onto everyone who walks in the door. AT&T also installs the heaviest and bulkiest anti-theft bricks onto the back of iPads and iPhones, making it virtually impossible to get a feel for their weight (lack thereof) and feel. I have to believe this is their deliberate attempt to marginalize Apple products.
I walked in to a store last Saturday to decide on the color and they had the one I wanted in stock. They were only accepting weborders, so I used one of their computers to order it and picked it up half an hour later. No line, easy process. But, I guess I had a less-in-demand config: 64GB, silver, T-mobile mini.